Highland Games

by Laura Hunsaker

  Highland Games

  By

  Laura Hunsaker

  (c) Copyright by Laura Hunsaker, December 2012

  Cover art by Jenny Dixon (c) Copyright, December 2012

  Smashwords Edition

  Published by New Concepts Publishing

  Lake Park, GA

  http://store.newconceptspublishing.com

  This is a work of fiction. All characters, events, and places are of the author’s imagination and not to be confused with fact. Any resemblance to living persons or events is merely coincidence.

  Acknowledgements

  Thank you Jenna Maclaine, without your help I’d be abusing commas and sprinkling exclamation points all over the place.

  Another shout out goes to AnnieTegelan for always dropping everything for me no matter the time, and no matter how lame the problem.

  “Virutis Gloria Merces" - Honour is the Reward of Bravery --MacRobert family motto

  Chapter One

  Scotland, Spring 1793

  The hag was pulling his strings, and Malcolm MacRobert hated having someone else's will forced upon him. However, his laird needed him, and that was enough. Malcolm had heard of their ally the MacRae laird taking a woman of mesmerizing beauty from another time, and anything a MacRae could do, a MacRobert could do as well. Steeling himself and throwing his shoulders back, Colm braced himself for what they were about to do. Before he could so much as take a step, a heavy hand landed on his forearm.

  “Are ye sure?”

  “Aye.”

  His best friend and son of the laird, Caelen was staring intently at him. “Ye doona have to do this.”

  “Aye, Caelen. I do. And ye ken it as well as I.”

  Caelen blew out a breath, and closed his silver eyes. “Aye, that I do.” Opening his eyes, Caelen’s grip tightened, then left Colm’s arm. “Virutis Gloria Merces, braithair.” Honor is the reward of bravery, the MacRobert family motto. By the time Colm returned, he hoped that he had more than just honor. Everything hinged on this.

  The old hag Grissall had told the laird a woman from a distant time needed to be brought into their clan, but she wouldn’t say why. The witch was never wrong in her visions, but she was a selfish old bat, and one never knew her motives. But the laird believed this was for the good of the clan, so Caelen had offered to go to this far away time. As future laird, he felt it his duty. But she’d had words for the son of the laird as well. His destiny was not yet come. And then her hazy gaze had landed on Malcolm. Straightening from his position Malcolm had stalked over to the old woman and glared down at her from his impressive height. He was taller even than the Caelen, who stood a handful over six feet.

  “Why are you lookin’ at me, old woman?” Malcolm had all but growled at her.

  “You who will no’ be laird. You who will no’ find a wife here. You who will no’ find happiness or peace here…”

  “Have you a point, hag?” Malcolm looked deliberately mocking. He hated this old witch. Witch, he almost smiled as even her name, Grissall, meant witch. She was self-serving to the end, and he didn’t believe for one moment that she was concocting this plan for his future happiness.

  Grissall cackled at him. “Aye, I’ve a point, lad. Your destiny lies in the future. And your destiny is my destiny.”

  “Stop speaking in riddles. How can we share the same destiny? ‘Tis no’ possible.” Colm was glaring at his laird Iain MacRobert. “She’s trying to twist fate to her own will. And I’ll no’ be a part of this.”

  Before he could storm out, his laird, who until now had been quiet, stood and said “You’d deny your laird? The man who reared ye as kin?”

  That froze Colm in his tracks. Damn. The man had taken him in when his family had been killed during a friendly neighboring reive. Which had turned out to be less neighborly and more of a slaughter. So to show his deference, and his appreciation, Colm had taken the clan name MacRobert, even though he’d been born a Donnachaidh.

  “Laird, ye ken I’d deny ye nothing.”

  “Good, then it’s settled. You’re to go and retrieve this lass from her time, and bring her to ours. If all follows as planned, she’ll be yours to keep.”

  That shocked Colm even more. His mouth gaped for but a moment, before he ground out, “I’m to wed?”

  “Is that a problem, laddie?” When the MacRobert’s voice grew soft, Colm knew he was at his most deadly, and not to trifle with the man.

  “Nay, laird.”

  "Aye then. You've no reason to be sour. You've a grand adventure ahead of ye lad. You have my trust, Colm, and I ken you’ll make me proud.” He patted his still flat stomach. “Now, let us eat! We’ve a feast to prepare. If all goes well, we’ll have a wedding to attend.”

  Pushing the memory away, Colm steadied his breathing and stepped forward into the cave. The old woman was waiting for him. He could feel her in there. Caelen followed, but Colm stopped him with a hand to the chest. Being a couple inches taller than Caelen helped at times like this.

  “Nay, Caelen. I do this alone.”

  Caelen looked as if he would argue, but instead dipped his head in acknowledgement. Colm nodded and strode into the cave. He refused to look back.

  * * * *

  Huntington Beach, California, Present Day

  “C’mon Piper! Dig it!” Piper Grant landed in the beach sand, flat on her face, with her arms straight out and missed the ball completely. She was just shy of six feet tall and she sucked at volleyball. Living in Southern California, that was akin to blasphemy.

  “Great, now I’m going to travel to Scotland with scraped knees,” Piper grumbled, examining her palms and knees.

  “Oh hush, you’ll be fine. Besides you don’t leave until late tonight anyway, right?” Katie Rush, Piper’s best friend, and the one who’d convinced her to play beach volleyball, came over to stand at Piper’s side.

  “Yep, I’m taking the red eye hoping to sleep through the flight. Maybe I’ll catch a break on the jet lag.”

  This was not Piper’s dream vacation at all. Katie had planned for over a year to take a trip to Scotland and stay at a sweet little B&B near the Highland Games that had started this week. But just last week, she’d found out her mom’s cancer was back, and she would need a double mastectomy. Katie wanted to stay nearby, just in case. The trip was non-refundable, though, so Katie had tried to change the date, reservations, flights, all of it, and unfortunately she couldn’t make it work out where she wouldn’t take a huge financial loss. Enter Piper. Piper had been saving for a surf trip to Oahu’s North Shore next fall. The waves were pretty sweet and would be some of the biggest she would surf. That vacation money she had saved was the only reason Piper had been able to afford Katie’s trip. So instead of “Aloha Hawaii,” it was now “Hello Scotland.”

  Piper knew how close Katie and her mom were, she just hadn’t had the same kind of relationship with her mother. Piper was not just an only child, but she was an orphan as well. As an infant, she’d been adopted by an older couple who couldn’t have children. While she’d never lacked for anything, they’d never really loved her. She had always felt like their new pet, rather than a beloved daughter. So often they would travel to exotic locations for extended vacations, but Piper always stayed with the nannies. When they weren’t travelling, they were working, so Piper felt like she hardly knew them.

  The only place she’d ever felt at home was on the waves. Surfing was her passion. After her parents had died on one of their adventures, she’d spent more and more time out on the water. Skipping college and living off of the modest inheritance her parents had left her maybe wasn’t the best career move for her, but to be honest, she didn’t regret it. After being orphaned twice, she really just wanted to surf. Piper worked part-time at
her local library on Main Street. It was within walking distance of the Pier, so Piper could surf as often as possible. She adored working at the library because the only thing she loved as much as surfing was reading. And that’s where she’d met Katie-at the library one year in high school. They’d both reached for the same book at the same time, and had been best friends ever since.

  “Thanks again for doing this for me, Piper.”

  Piper waved her words away with her hand. “You know I don’t mind.” Katie hadn’t stopped thanking her and Piper was ready to snap at her, except she knew that this really was Katie’s dream. For Piper? Going to dreary old Scotland wasn’t her idea of a wonderful time. Castles were damp. The air was damp. And Piper was already acting like a wet blanket. She mentally sighed and tried to look at the bright side. Men in kilts. That was a definite bright side. Men in kilts lifting heavy objects and tossing them, or men in kilts and archery contests. Maybe a rugby game. Yeah that improved her mood quite a bit.

  “Piper? Piper? Hello in there? What has put that goofy smile on your face?” Katie was waving her hand in front of Piper’s eyes like a madwoman.

  “Huh? Oh I was thinking of all the hot kilted men I’ll see there.” Piper winked at Katie and tossed her a saucy smile.

  Katie groaned “Oh don’t remind me. You’re going to be drinking ale and Scottish whiskey with super hot Scotsmen, in KILTS! Take lots of pictures, okay?” Katie’s smile wobbled and Piper grabbed her in a bear hug.

  “Oh, honey, it’ll be okay. I’ll email you pictures every day and I’ll get some hot shirtless guys in kilts to pose for me, and it’ll be great. You can share them with your mom, who will be JUST FINE.” Piper emphasized the last part, since she knew that was what was really bothering Katie.

  Katie sniffled and smiled at Piper.

  “You two gonna make out or what?” a male voice called to them. Piper rolled her eyes at Katie and they broke apart to glare at Dean. Katie pegged him in the head with the volleyball as he and his partner Ty sauntered over. “What? What’d I say?”

  Piper looked at Dean, who waggled his eyebrows in a mock lecherous leer. Rolling her eyes, she got ready to bail. Giving Katie a quick kiss on the cheek, Piper told her friends that she had to finish packing. She snatched up her jean shorts and flip flops, and with a “Later dudes” tossed over her shoulder, walked back to her car.

  * * * *

  Colm was watching the lass walk away from a beach that looked like none he’d ever seen, and wondered how the men would allow their women to walk about with naught but scraps of cloth covering their most intimate places. The vision collapsed, and Colm was left staring at the hag once more. He didn’t understand how her magic worked, nor how she created an image out of nothing but air. He did understand that the lovely lass was his. Something about her called to him.

  “Are ye ready, Malcolm MacRobert?” her dry voice crackled, causing Colm to suppress a shudder. “One day, lad, remember. One day only. My magic willna hold longer than that.”

  Colm nodded, but remained silent. His whole demeanor had changed since seeing the lass. He still didn’t understand what the hag gained from this, but he knew she was right about this lass. He needed her. More, he wanted her. With that thought foremost in his head, he stepped through the portal the hag had created. Her laughter unnerved him, but he touched the charm he wore about his neck and had to force himself not to look back.

  Chapter Two

  Piper was pissed beyond belief at Katie. Like seriously pissed. Like she was going to shave her eyebrows off her while she slept pissed. Katie had neglected to tell Piper that it was a singles trip. The amount of men who had been hitting on her had gone from flattering to obnoxious. They were just as bad as the Spring Breakers who hit up the hot spots looking for an easy lay. Piper was so not an easy lay. The last hour of the bus ride had been awful. All of the American guys but one or two had taken to wearing kilts and flashing any of the girls who walked by. Most of the girls giggled, but Piper could only roll her eyes. After two days of the flirting and touring, Piper was ready to plead stomach issues and stay inside her room the whole time. She could download a book to her eReader (thank goodness she’d had the foresight to bring it with her) and hide.

  She wanted to be drinking a mai tai out of a coconut or a pineapple or some other frou frou drink. She wanted to be laying on the beach in a tropical setting. She wanted to be anywhere but on this hot and overbooked bus ride with a bunch of American horn dogs. Uncrossing her jean-clad legs, she reached down for her bag and dug out her phone. Katie wanted pictures so Piper stuffed her phone in her back pocket for easy access. She would take so many pictures of guys in kilts, even if it meant getting the hairy old guys. Take that Katie, Piper thought.

  Her ride from hell was finally over when the bus pulled up in front of the surprisingly beautiful castle that was hosting the Highland Fling or Games, or whatever this was. Most of the stops on the tour were ruins of where proud fortresses once stood, rather than the functioning building she was looking at now. It was Blair Castle in Atholl, according to the guide. Gazing up at the white walls, Piper stood in awe. Now this was a fairy tale waiting to happen, a castle that was fit for a princess. The guide was continuing on about how the Scottish tug o’ war championship would be one of the highlights of the Games. A few of the guys in the back of the bus were sniggering and making rude comments about how Scots playing tug o’ war was nothing, and how real men wouldn’t play tug o’ war and wear skirts. Piper sighed and rolled her eyes at their rude comments. She doubted the smack-talkers in the back would last through a game of rugby with the Scots. No wonder people hated American tourists. At the moment, even she hated American tourists. Well, the ones she was with anyway.

  “With surviving architectural roots going back as far as 1269, Blair Castle is one of Britain’s oldest continuously inhabited houses. One of the first private homes in Scotland to open to the public, Blair Castle and the surrounding estate welcomes more visitors than any other, and is uniquely placed to help you make the most of the event you are planning.”

  With the tour guide’s voice droning on in the background, Piper stared in awe at the grand castle. It was completely white, with a dark trim, and the lands it sat on were the perfect backdrop for the beautiful building. The grounds were clipped and manicured around the castle, but not far beyond was a rugged wilderness that refused to be tamed. For some reason, Piper, the girl who hated camping, who couldn’t stand hiking, who lived to surf, wanted to go explore the woods. She was getting really excited to get off the bus.

  Everyone filed off the bus like a slow moving herd of cattle. Push, shove, shuffle, shuffle. It was a long time coming, but Piper finally stepped off the bus and took a full breath of lovely spring air. It was crisp, fresh, and had Piper tipping her face to the sun with a small smile playing about her full lips.

  The feeling of someone watching her stole the joy of the moment. Piper’s eyes snapped open and she turned toward the obvious culprits-the jerks from the bus, but no, they’d found some lovely Scottish lass to focus their dubious charm on. Piper turned in a slow circle, her eyes scanning the area. Nothing stood out as unusual, and no one was overtly staring at her. Weird. Shaking it off and determined to at least enjoy the Highland Games, Piper was off to take pictures of hot guys in kilts for Katie.

  * * * *

  Stepping through into another time should be monumental, or life-altering, or earth-shattering. But walking into a copse of trees was nothing special, and a wee bit underwhelming. Colm stalked out to the edge of the tree line and stared out at Blair Atholl. It hadn’t changed much, and it looked as if the hag had been correct in the date of the Games at least. Colm began his walk down the hillside and stopped once he got to the edge of the woods. He stood staring at the unbelievable sight before him.

  The woman he’d come seeking was not far from him at all. Once the smelly and large coach-like contraption rumbled off, he had a better view of her, and she was just as lovely as he rememb
ered. He was both thrilled to have found her so easily, and unnerved by how accurate the old hag had been. He wondered once again what the witch would gain from this excursion?

  It was too coincidental, too perfect. His clan needed him, and the one woman who could help was here, at this Highland Games so far from his own time. But he had no other choice, he refused to fail his laird. Colm surveyed the modern Games yet kept his eye on the woman. He had no idea of her name, but he had fair skill with the lassies. Surely it wouldn’t fail him in this time, with this lass?

  Decided, Colm strode forward only to find the lass was walking towards a group of men readying for a caber toss. What was she thinking, going up to a group of men? Whatever she said to them made them laugh and they all pulled their shirts off. What in the bloody hell…

  Seething for no reason he could pinpoint, Colm stalked closer until she turned around and her eyes landed on him.

  “Hi!” She offered him a warm smile. Colm’s heart stuttered. Then she offered him her hand. No, wait, it wasn’t her hand he clasped, but a small silver object instead.

  “Would you take a picture of us? All you have to do is press this button right here. Thanks!”

  Colm pressed the button, and blinded himself with a light. Blinking furiously, he saw her turn back to him and she held it up to the men wearing naught but their plaids. Her fingers tangled with his for a brief second, then she pressed the button capturing an image of the men, and she said, “Cool, hold it right there, now can you take a picture of me with them?”

  Before he could respond, she had jogged back to the men and one of them lifted her so the others could each put their hands on her holding her so she lay across them all while he helplessly looked on. Some of those men had their hands on her arse. And her stomach. And her thighs. God help him he was furious. Grinding his teeth, he pressed the button and the men put her down, one of them lingering nearby. Colm walked over to her and stood right beside her, closer than the other man. The other man ignored him, and continued speaking with her.